Marathon的由来.doc

学英语报社 全新课标理念，优质课程资源 第  PAGE 2 页 共  NUMPAGES 2 页 An Olympic Story: Phidippides and the Origins of the Marathon The cities of Greece were at war with Persia and in the year 490 B.C. Greece was not a single country at that time, but rather a collection of sometimes-hostile city-states. City-states include a main city and the area surrounding that city. The Persian Army had already captured a number of Greek islands and continued its expansion. Hoping to take Athens, the Persian Army landed a large force on the plains of Marathon, just outside the city, where they prepared their attack. The Athenian Army was greatly outnumbered and they knew that they would be unable to survive the Persian attack without help. In desperation, the great messenger Phidippides was sent to the city of Sparta to ask for help. He is said to have travelled the 250-kilometre course in only 36 hours. Sparta agreed to help, but they would be unable to arrive in time to save the Athenians because the Spartans were observing a religious festival. They would arrive long after the battle had been fought. Phidippides ran back, another 250-kilometres, to inform the Athenian generals of the news. The desperate Athenians, who were outnumbered four to one, organized a surprise attack on the Persian formations, and managed against all odds to defeat them and drive away their enemies. As the legend goes, Phidippides then ran more than 40 kilometres back to Athens to bring news of their victory, and died a short while later from exhaustion. It is after Phidippides?final run, from Marathon to Athens, that the 41.3 kilometre Marathon race is named. Phidippides The Marathon course of the 2004 Athens Paralympic Games followed the same route that Phidippides is said to have taken in ancient times, and this same course was taken by runners in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.